The document provides information about hosting a library comic con event, including: 1) An overview of what to expect at a comic con like cosplay, panels, artists, vendors, and gaming. 2) Suggestions for programming goals such as promoting the graphic novel collection and providing social opportunities for patrons. 3) Tips for planning a library comic con like determining the location, staffing needs, and partnerships that could help with the event.

1. HOSTING YOUR
OWN
COMIC CON:
THE ULTIMATE
ALL-AGES
PROGRAM
PRESENTED BY
KATIE LAMANTIA & EMILY VINCI
MARCH 23, 2017

2. THIS IS US!
Emily Vinci
Fiction Librarian
Favorite Movie: Jurassic Park
Favorite Comic Series: LOL like I could
choose
Favorite Superhero: Wonder Woman!
Patronus: Tina Belcher
Katie LaMantia
Teen Librarian
Favorite Movie: Perks of Being a Wallflower
Favorite Teen Book Heroine: Aelin Ashryver
Galathynius aka Celaena Sardothien
Favorite Superhero: Jillian Holtzmann
Patronus: Samantha Bee

3. HAS YOUR LIBRARY EVER HOSTED A
COMIC CON?
Let us know in the chat!

4. - COMICS
• periodical sequential-art
stories that provide
installments of a larger story,
typically released in monthly
issues
• ex: Batman #1, Batman #2,
Batman #3, etc.
WHAT WE MEAN WHEN WE SAY…

5. - GRAPHIC NOVELS
• one self-contained sequential-art
story read as a novel
• ex. Ghost World
• OR (esp. in library terms) a collection
of several issues of a story (generally
one arc of the plot) – more
commonly referred to as a “trade”
• ex. Batman Vol. 1 collects issues
#1-#7

6. - COMIC CON
• a convention celebrating not
only comic books and graphic
novels, but many different
facets of pop culture and the
fandoms therein

7. A (VERY) BRIEF HISTORY OF CON CULTURE
Though it may seem as though comic conventions are a new fad, they’ve actually
been around for awhile. What we know now as San Diego Comic Con, for
example, was established in 1970 as the Golden State Comic Book Convention.
Its establishment gave it a place amongst countless fan conventions already in
existence, with science fiction fan conventions dating back to the 1930s and
comic conventions popping up in New York in the 1960s.
Cons started out with the purest of intentions, with passionate fans gathering to
discuss and debate the objects of their fandom. Often dismissed as outsiders,
freaks, and – you guessed it – nerds, conventions gave them a place free from
judgment and criticism and full of acceptance and celebratory glee.

8. CON CULTURE & MAINSTREAM NERD TODAY

9. WHAT TO EXPECT AT A COMIC CON TODAY

10. EXAMPLES OF NOTABLE COMIC CONS

11. ADDITIONAL TERMS TO KNOW
Fandom: a subculture/community of people who share a common interest in
a particular piece of pop culture (i.e. movie, TV show, comic book, etc.),
often characterized, in part, for the feelings of empathy and camaraderie
felt with one another over their shared interests
Fanboy/Fangirl: passionate, dedicated fan who is overzealous and
passionate towards one or more specific fanbase. It sometimes overrides
social boundaries and is used as a negative term, but many fangirls or
fanboys refer to themselves as such.

12. TERMS CONTINUED
Cosplay: Costume Play; creating and designing the costume and the
action of wearing it
RPG: Role-Playing Game in which players assume the roles of
characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for
acting out these roles within a narrative and make decisions as
characters. Ultimate example: Dungeons and Dragons

13. KNOW YOUR FANDOMS

14. GET INSPIRED BY YOUR COLLECTION!

15. POP CULTURE RESOURCES

16. AND DON’T FORGET…
THE INTERNET IS YOUR FRIEND!

17. WHAT DOES A LIBRARY COMIC CON LOOK LIKE?

18. OPPORTUNITIES TO GEEK AND SHARE
COMMON INTERESTS
- Main Events
• cosplayers
• panels & workshops
• artists
• vendors
• gaming

19. WHY SHOULD YOUR LIBRARY HOST A
COMIC CON?

20. POSSIBLE PROGRAM GOALS AND OUTCOMES
- promote your graphic novel collection/increase circulation
- provide social opportunities as well as opportunities for your
patrons to experience a Comic Con if they are otherwise unable to
(esp. if your library isn’t in a city or urban area)
- show the library in a new light

21. REACHING NEW AUDIENCES
- new people, or people using the library in a
new way
- people who come to other pop culture events
• online communities, Comic Con fans
• not necessarily interested in traditional
library programming
• engagement and interactive elements are
important

22. BECAUSE IT’S FUN!

23. HOW CAN I DO THIS?
Things to have in mind when you decide to host a Comic Con:
• determining time, location, space
• effect it will have on regular services and daily operations
• staffing needs
• partnerships and natural allies
• off-site possibilities, other options

24. KEEP CALM AND CON ON!
Anyone can do this, no matter the budget, time, or staff.
You just need to have an open mind and a willingness to learn.

25. LET’S DO THIS!
Assembling Your Comic Con Team
Organization and Pre-Planning
Comic Con Day!
Q&A

26. AVENGERS ASSEMBLE!
Putting together your Comic Con staff super team

27. QUALITIES OF A VALUABLE COMIC CON
TEAM
- adventurous
- imaginative
- pop culture savvy, or willing to learn
- range of experiences or expertise
• programming and non-programming

28. OUTSIDE THE REALM
Expand participation to staff outside of the Comic
Con team; they have pop culture interests too!
• include departments not normally involved in
programming, for example circulation,
branches, maintenance, etc.
• discover hidden talents and interests
• make staff happier and gain additional staff
buy-in, thus increasing your ability to promote
programs from within

29. PLAY TO YOUR PLAYERS’ STRENGTHS
If a staff member has a particular interest in
an area of pop culture or programming, let
them take the lead.
If you're a supervising librarian, perhaps you
can't offer your staff higher pay or many
opportunities to go to professional
development conferences, but you can offer
them the freedom to incorporate their own
interests into programming and outreach.

30. Emily, Fiction-
Artist and
Vendor
Coordinator
Monica, Kids-
Face Painting,
Kids Superhero
Crafts
Dan- Teen,
Comics
Coordinator
Katie, Teen-
Fandom Teen
Event, Costume
Parade Leader
Allison, Kids-
Face Painting,
Kids Costume
Characters

32. ORGANIZATION AND
PRE-PLANNING

33. SCOPE AND SIZE OF YOUR CON
- Will your Con take place throughout the library or will it be contained in
one spot/room?
- Aside from your core planning team, who will staff your Con?
- What is your budget?
• All of these questions will help you determine how big your Con
will be before you even pick the date.
- Talk to your management team! Get them on board and keep them in the
loop.

34. SCHAUMBURG SIZE AND SCOPE

35. SETTING THE DATE
Timing is everything
- conflict with other local Cons
- school year
- community events
- weather conditions (if applicable)
Strategic date tie-ins with other pop culture events … (or not!)
- May the 4th
- Free Comic Book Day
- Harry Potter’s birthday

36. TIMING
Hours of operation
- all day event
- few hours
Things to consider
- patron impact
- staff time

37. SCHAUMBURG TIMING

38. GETTING STARTED
The earlier you can start planning (relatively speaking), the
better. We recommend 6-8 months in advance, especially
for first-timers.
Brainstorming sessions
- keep in mind your target audience
- resources you have on hand
- staff resources and equipment
- performers & artists
• will likely need to be booked far in advance
- What are popular programs you already have, and
how can you put a pop culture spin on them for Comic
Con?

39. COMIC CONS = COMMUNITY
Community
- new audiences
- patrons young and old
- ultimate all ages programs, including adults without children – pop culture
is the great equalizer!

40. COMIC CON DAY

43. PROGRAMMING CHOICES
- taking traditional Comic Con features and making them accessible to patrons
- relating it to pop culture and libraries
- utilize resources your library already has and make it Comic Con-esque
- mesh principles behind Comic Con and nerd culture into library life

44. WHY WE DID WHAT WE DID

45. KID OR FAMILY THEMED EVENTS
Crafts for kids
- superhero capes, armbands, masks, coloring sheets
Costume parade
- free
- attendees can show off what they made/wore
- shows patrons areas of the library they never/seldom see

46. FANDOM FRENZY
For Teens and Adults:
- trivia
- game
- snack
- craft
*chance to geek out with like-minded
friends and find new fandoms to
explore

47. CREATIVE WORKSHOPS
- Drawing workshop
• can separate by age
• give it a comic con twist- superheroes, Star Wars theme etc.
- Fandom art

48. ARTIST ALLEY

50. PART II
Partnerships
Budget
Marketing
Evaluation
Outcomes
Q&A

51. Making the Case for Comic
Con

52. WHY COMIC CON AT YOUR LIBRARY?
- ultimate all ages program
-motivate staff to try new programs and use their
interests in their jobs
- show that the library is interested in current pop
culture, comics and relevant to everyday interests
- introduce non-library users to collections,
programming, and the library

53. PARTNERSHIP POSSIBILITIES

54. PARTNERSHIPS - BOTH LOCAL AND IN A
GALAXY FAR, FAR AWAY
- comic shops & bookstores
- game stores
- collectibles shops
- comics publishers
- nerdy organizations
-cosplayers
-costume shops

55. BUDGET

56. PROGRAMMING ON THE CHEAP/DIY
- pull from multiple departments
- utilize staff talents
- make use of in-house resources

57. MARKETING

59. PASSIVE PROMOTIONS

63. SOCIAL MEDIA

64. GIVEAWAYS - reusable tote bags
- free comics donated from local a local comic shop,
sent from publishers, and withdrawn from our
collection
- small prizes available at the public service desks to
be handed out during the costume parade (prizes we
had on hand in our youth department)

65. EVALUATION

66. COMIC CON EVALUATION PROCESS
We opted to have several staff members with clipboards and surveys to ask people
throughout the day how they felt about their Comic Con experience. We kept the
questions short and sweet:
• What did you like most about Comic Con?
• What could the library do to improve your experience at all-ages programs?
• You and/or your children learned something new about pop culture – disagree,
agree, etc.
- In terms of attendance numbers, obviously it is quite difficult to keep track. In
order to come up with a count, we took the door count from the day and
compared it to door counts on the same day in past years.

67. OUTCOMES

68. WHAT WE LEARNED
- Additional staff members want to help, so let them!
- delegate responsibilities for before, during, and after the Con
- make sure everyone knows their duties
- keep it all ages and family friendly
- be flexible
- it will be loud!

70. ALA Graphic Novels & Comics in Libraries Member
Interest Group
ALA Games and Gaming Roundtable
Graphic Novel Roundtable
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

71. Katie LaMantia
klamantia@stdl.org
Emily Vinci
evinci@stdl.org
CONTACT US

72. A Year of Programs for
Millennials and More
Amy J. Alessio, Katie LaMantia,
and Emily Vinci
Click here to buy from ALA
Editions

73. 50+ Fandom Programs:
Planning Festivals and
Events for Teens,
Tweens, and Adults
Look for it at ALA Annual 2017!
Amy J. Alessio, Katie LaMantia,
and Emily Vinci

74. THANK YOU
FOR
ATTENDING!!